DESIGNING EFFECTIVE LIBRARY ASSIGNMENTS

 

*   PLANNING

     1.   Assume your students have minimal library knowledge.

The library faculty has a schedule of Open Workshops that cover basic library and research skills. It is a good idea to require that your students sign up for at least one of these workshops at a time that is convenient for them – but not before they are ready to begin a library assignment! (We find that students who do not have a particular reason to use the library, or learn information literacy skills, will not remember what they learn in a bibliographic instruction session).

 

  2.   Consult with a librarian before the assignment.

The Hostos Library faculty care about making teaching and learning as painless and productive as possible. We will work with you to design an appropriate, useful assignment that will achieve your course goals/objectives. For more information, click on Course-integrated Instruction or contact Prof. Miriam Laskin, Instructional Services Librarian (ext. 4207 or mlaskin@hostos.cuny.edu ).  

 

3.   Explain the assignment clearly, preferably in writing. (Send a copy to Prof. Laskin for

      the Reference Librarians.)

Our students need clear, specific, written instructions for their library assignments. Your suggestions for types of resources to use, and complete, accurate citations for specific works are good to include in the assignment. The Hostos Library Web site has a number of Pathways (Subject Guides: these are collections of the best sources Hostos Library has in print, in CUNY’s licensed databases, or on the Web, in different academic disciplines.) We are adding these Guides continually, and you will find them in two main places on the Library Web site: We have Guides and good quality Web-based resources at Reference and Research Guides  (Click on Biology under Pathfinders for an excellent example.) Also under Reference and Research Guides, you will find Internet Subject Links  - the above-described Web-based resources, divided by subject. Finally, at present we have some Subject Guides for Biography and Literary Criticism under Teaching and Learning: Instructional Guides and Handouts.

  

*   TOPICS

  1. Avoid very current topics, or local topics If you wish your students to use scholarly journals.

There may only be articles and essays available in the daily press or in popular magazines. In some cases there may be very little or nothing published about the topic. (However, the library has excellent licensed databases such as Lexis-Nexis and Ethnic Newswatch which provide full text articles from newspapers and periodicals if you should wish to give a library assignment on a current events topic.)

  1. Avoid topics that are too general Or too specific.

Overly-general topics will retrieve an unmanageable number of sources or may retrieve sources that are no specific to a student’s topic. If a topic is too specific, there may be little or no published information.

  1. Avoid “scavenger hunts.”

Searching for obscure or trivial facts frustrates students, can cause chaos in the library stacks, and teaches students little about information literacy skills.

  

*  LOGISTICS  

  1. Test your library assignment by doing it yourself.

If you try out your assignment, you can find any problems students may encounter in doing the assignment before you give it, and save yourself and your students from frustration and disappointment if something doesn’t work the way you visualized it.  

 

  1. Always be sure the Library has the needed materials or sources.

Save students from frustration and confusion. If there is a particular source that you know will be necessary for all the students to use in the course of doing the assignment, place it on Course Reserve for the duration of the assignment. (Telephone extension for the Reserve/Periodicals Desk is 4224)  

  1. Avoid a “mob scene”.

Dozens of students using just one book, article, or index, or looking for the same information usually leads to misplacement, loss, or mutilation of materials. Allow students to choose from a variety of topics and sources, and don’t forget that you can place materials on Course Reserve  when a particular source is required.  

 

  1. Be clear in your use of the term “Internet.”

The Internet and the World Wide Web are not the same, and are not interchangeable terms, though we often forget that. If your students are asked to use “the Internet,” it is important to clarify what they should use. Many licensed journal databases in the Hostos Library and full-text sources are available through the Internet and could be considered Internet sources. Do you want your students to find authoritative web sites, or use only library resources? As described above, the Hostos Library Web site offers many authoritative web-based resources at Reference and Research Guides  and Teaching & Learning .   

   

  1. Refer students to library staff for help!

Remind your students that librarians and other library staff are available at reference and information desks and can provide individual help. Even students who have had library instruction through workshops and course-related sessions may need additional help.

 

Once again, please feel free to contact the Instructional Services Librarian, Prof. Miriam Laskin (ext. 4207 or mlaskin@hostos.cuny.edu ) for information, clarification, or help. Individual library faculty are subject experts or are familiar with the courses in your Department through their work as Department liaison. Prof. Laskin will put you in touch with the librarian who can work most fruitfully with you on developing either course-related library instruction, or to help you in developing your specific library assignments.

                                                                             M. Laskin, Ph.D.

                                                                             August 2001

                                                                             Hostos Community College Library  

                                                                             Instructional Services

(Adapted with permission from the University of Oregon Library System, Eugene, OR)